I'm recruiting 3 to 6 players (from these boards and a few other forums) for an online game.

EDIT : Currently recruiting two players and the party is missing a cleric.

Introduction :

The Mayor of Selhark has mandated his Armsmaster, Cornelian Graye, to secure the trading route leading to Torsche. This frontier region has recently fell victim to the raids of the vicious gnole warrior, Gritznak the Bold, and his band. The good people of the local village of Malforten have been unable to locate, trap or capture him. The Armsmaster is offering the sum of 500 silver royals to anyone who can put an end to his actions and bring the brigand to justice. Will the adventurers be able to stop the beast and live long enough to collect their bounty?

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This old-school campaign is based on the Castles & Crusades A series of adventure modules (please don't spoil the fun by consulting copies). The game is set in Drohksmere in my own adaptation of the Twylos setting.

General Information :

The campaign will be run with the Wayfarers core book and the following HOUSE RULES. For those unfamiliar with the rules set, although not required, I highly recommend purchasing the pdf (or even better, the book). A free preview of the rules is also available and it's complete enough to start playing. Players unfamiliar with the system are welcome. It should be easy to learn for anyone who has experience with any edition of D&D. It can be described as a classless, modern, and streamlined evolution of 2E AD&D.

It will be played online via the ScreenMonkey virtual table and Skype. They are easy to use and players do not need to spend or install anything other than Skype. ScreenMonkey simply runs off your basic Internet browser (Internet Explorer is recommended for optimal compatibility).

As far as I know, all of the game's participants are adults (please let me know if I'm wrong). I would consider my games to be basically PG-13 although, when appropriate, I personnally have no problem in occasionally venturing into more mature themes as long as it doesn't slip into vulgarity (somewhere in between PG-13 and rated R) but I will obviously adjust the campaign's tone to the players' preferences.

I'm hoping to hold a session (usually 3-4 hours) every two or three weeks. I'm available on most Friday nights and weekends. Each session will be scheduled from this thread as we go along, depending on everyones' availability and time zone. The link for the sessions will be announced on THIS SITE. I will privately message you the password to join the game. For the sake of simplicity, it would be better if you use your character's first name as a username when logging in.

Players are expected to visit this thread at least once a week to get the latest news about the campaign. This minimal level of dedication is necessary in order to stick with the desired gaming schedule.

Appointed sessions will take place if at least three players are present. The character of absentees will remain inactive and will be considered to have remained in town or any other convenient explanation. They will therefore not receive any skill points nor share of treasure during their absence.

Please note that English is not my first language. Somewhat of an accent and the occasional mumbling are to be expected. Thank you for your understanding!

Signing-up :

You will first need to create a 1st skill level character and post it in this thread. Here's a sample character write-up (including house rules) to be used as a template :

Thanos comes from a family of smiths and builders, but was never really interested in such things. After some messy family issues he became much more involved in his faith. When he came of age, he went into an apprenticeship as a Thainist, much to his family's dismay. Not quite brilliant but always devout, his master decided to send him out to gain more experience and change the world to the dwarven kingdom of Tharkenge.

Please include a short paragraph describing your character's appearance, background, and motivations. A portrait (picture or drawing) of your character will also be required to generate a token.

If you need help finding a portrait for your character, I've assembled a large collection from all over the Net :

In addition to the base Dwarf, Elf, Half-Elf, Half-Orc, Hobgoblin (orc/goblin hybrid), Human, and Orc; the Cambion (human/demon offspring), Gnome, Goblin, Ogre, Ratkin (ratman), and Reptilian (lizardman) are allowed. The details concerning the optional races can be found on pages 45-46 of the preview file. Also note that orcs (and therefore half-orcs) are more common, civilized and not as reviled in this setting.

STEP 2 : Attributes

There are 5 attributes : Agility, Endurance, Intellect, Presence, and Strength. They are pretty self-explanatory if you are familiar with D&D except for Presence which can be described as wisdom and charisma rolled into one.

The normal attribute range is 5-16 (instead of the usual 3-18) with 8-11 as average values. Attributes below 5 (min 1) or over 16 (max 20) are exceptionally low or high.

New characters get 35 points to spend on their attributes scores (see Table 2.1.1 on page 10 of the preview file) but the easiest way to go about this is to simply pick a pre-generated set. Racial adjustments are applied afterwards.

A series of secondary traits are derived from the attributes such as Health Points, Dodge (the equivalent of armor class), Physical & Mental Resistance (the equivalent of saving throws), Initiative, and Armor Impedance. I can calculate them for you if you want.

STEP 3 : Disciplines

Wayfarers is a classless system in which all of the standard fantasy archetypes can be easily created. You can custom-build your own class by buying disciplines (abilities) for your character. You can therefore build your own custom class. Humans get 45 points and other races get 40 points. There is a list (Table 2.1.12) on page 16 of the preview file. Obviously, the disciplines are not all described in the preview file. I'll help you with that.

I also allow the optional disciplines listed in my house rules document.

Note that discipline points can also be used to buy additional proficiencies (skills, addressed in step 4) but proficiency points cannot be used to buy additional disciplines. The first grade of any of the disciplines can be purchased at 1st level with the exception of Increased Attribute and all of the Spell Circle disciplines.

I first suggest that you come up with a character concept. Then, ask yourself the following general questions to guide you in the process : Do you want your character to wield magic? If so, is it arcane (wizard-like) or divine (cleric-like) magic? If not, do you want your character to be more skill- based (rogue-like) or combat-based (warrior-like).

If you are totally lost, you can simply state what class you would like your character to correspond to and I have pre-generated 1st level characters that are ready to go.

STEP 4 : Proficiencies

New characters get 20 proficiency points to spend. A list of the proficiencies can be found on page 19 of the preview file (see table 2.1.14).

The first grade of any of the proficiencies can be purchased at 1st level.

As said before, left-over discipline points (if any) can be spent to buy additional proficiencies.

Note that all initial discipline and proficiency points must be spent upon character creation (no left-overs).

STEP 5 : Equipment

New characters get their presence x 12 silver coins to spend on their starting equipment, armor, and weapons (armor and weapons lists can be found on pages 91-92 of the preview file).

Initially, you might not have the opportunity to buy supplies. Please purchase anything your character will need for adventuring; including consumables such as rations, bandages (for Healing checks), ammunition, torches, oil, and water.

As said before, please include a short paragraph describing your character's appearance, background, and motivations. A portrait (picture or drawing) of your character will also be required to generate a token.

4 - Please wait until you are called upon before you move your character token and describe his actions.

5 - When out of combat, your character can walk up to 1/2 his movement rate or run up to his full movement rate per round.

6 - Unless you specify otherwise, you will be considered to have used the most direct route (straight lines whenever possible) for your movements.

7 - Most out of combat actions are resolved through proficiency rolls when deemed appropriate.

8 - I will not necessarily prompt passive proficiency rolls. You will most often need to actively use your proficiencies. For example, I may not automatically roll your perception to detect a secret door, you will need to search for it.

9 - Initiative rolls will be taken care of by an automated script at the beginning of every round.

10 - In combat, you may move up to 1/4 of your movement rate and THEN take any appropriate action (full attack, cast spell, drink potion, etc.)

OR you can move up to 1/4 of your movement rate, draw a weapon or switch weapons and THEN make 1 on-hand attack.

OR you can charge up to your full movement rate and THEN make 1 on-hand attack.

11 - Skill points (XP) will be awarded at the end of every session. Every player will receive the same amount based on the overall fun and challenge level of the session (generally 3-8 points and it takes 20 to level-up).

Bonus skill points can also be awarded by the GM to players who performed notable actions or roleplaying during the session.

12 - Should your character permanently die, he will posthumously receive his share of skill points for the session and you will be able to create a new character with half the number of skill points of the deceased character.

Your new character will also receive additional skill points at the end of every sessions (to reflect the added challenge) until he catches up with the rest of the party.

13 - Players are expected to keep an updated copy of their character sheet handy during game sessions and should try to familiarize themselves with their stats, abilities, and skills in order to help keep up the game's pace.

All, sound great. I am interested, I just have the whole family thing, with added marital stress recently, but I'll not go into details and bore you. I will see what I can do about dedicating time for this.